If He Goes Away
by AKJ4
Summary: An early Season 5 story: 'Alexis took a deep breath and levelled her gaze with Gates. "My father and Detective Beckett are involved in a romantic relationship, and have been for some time."'


**If He Goes Away**

"Captain Gates, may I have a word?"

"Yes of course. Alexis isn't it? Come and sit down." Captain Gates surveyed the woman with some surprise; Richard Castle's daughter had been around the precinct numerous times before, but she had never partaken in conversation with the young woman. Alexis' presence in her office was puzzling indeed.

"Thank you." She sat and crossed her right leg over her left, poised and confident. "I know you've had a busy day so I won't take up took much of your time… There's something I think you should know."

"And what's that, Miss Castle?"

Alexis took a deep breath and levelled her gaze with Gates. "My father and Detective Beckett are involved in a romantic relationship, and have been for some time."

"I see," she folded her glasses slowly, rested them on the desk before her then clasped her hands. The information was not new to her; she had suspected for a while. It had been particularly evident during the mess Gerry Tyson created when he attempted to frame Mr Castle for murder. But why the man's daughter was providing her with the information, she couldn't fathom. "Alexis, why are you telling me this?"

"I just thought it's something you should know."

"But why?"

"I just… I know they're trying to keep quiet about it because of some rule about colleagues not dating and I just thought if you knew…" Gone was the poise and confidence with which she'd walked into the room. Instead, she turned her gaze to the desk separating her from the captain. She pulled her sleeves over her hands and fiddled with them in an almost childlike manner.

"I could, what? Stop Mr Castle working with Detective Beckett?" she paused and surveyed the young woman's bowed head. "Stop Mr Castle working for the NYPD altogether?"

When Alexis raised her head suddenly, Gates knew she'd hit on the correct reasoning. She took a moment before questioning further, sensing the emotional turmoil the girl was suffering. Heck, she could see the upset in the tears which lined the clear blue eyes.

"Is this about what happened today, Alexis?"

The day had been a trying one all round. Castle had ended up on the wrong side of a suspect's gun and taken hostage. It was a tense few eyes during which panic-stricken Alexis and Martha flew into the precinct with wide eyes and shaking hands. Eventually, the suspect was talked down when further evidence revealed he was not the killer. Castle walked away unscathed, but the incident left more than a few emotional wounds.

Alexis sniffed and nodded to Gates' question, wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her sweater in a manner which made her seem so much younger than her years. Gates offered her a tissue and she took it with a watery, grateful smile. "I just figured it would keep him safe, you know. He's not a cop and he shouldn't be running around putting himself in danger just because he likes following Kate around. He's nearly died so many times since he started here. And it scares me, every single time. Sometimes when he leaves in the morning, I wonder if it's the last time I'll see him."

Numerous issues had been raised in her speech, and Victoria pondered which she should address first, and how. Spending a large chunk of her career in Internal Affairs, the captain had perhaps been a little sheltered from having direct contact with victims of crime, and victims' families. She thus fought to draw on every single instance of personal and professional experience of dealing with someone who had faced a trauma such as had Alexis today, in order to best help her.

"Alexis, this job," she began slowly, ensuring she had the tearful woman's attention before continuing. "By nature, it's dangerous. The men and women out there do this because they are good people who want to help. They want to help the people who live in this city. That may be by preventing crime in the first instance, or by helping victims of crime by providing them with answers. And there are inherent risks in providing that help."

"But Dad isn't a cop," Alexis bit back. "He doesn't have to do this."

"You're right, he's not a cop. But you're not giving him due credit. As much as it pains me to say this, he's actually very good at what he does. We've solved many cases with the help of his, er, slightly off the wall thinking. And he enjoys it. I see the sense of accomplishment he feels when he's aided us in apprehending a murderer. So whilst having Detective Beckett as his partner may provide some lure to his position, I believe it runs much deeper."

"So you're saying he does an important role?"

Gates nodded.

"And you believe he's truly happy doing it, not just because of Kate."

"That's my perception, yes. And from I've seen, Detective Beckett would do anything to protect your father, but even she hasn't attempted to stop him working cases. It's something he's driven to do, and from what I've seen, he would be quite unhappy if he was no longer permitted to consult with us."

"But it still scares me."

"I know," her expression was one of sympathy and understanding. "But you know what my father always told me; if you let it, fear will make all your decisions for you, and one day you'll realise it's stopped you from truly enjoying life. That mantra got me where I am today," she paused and assessed the woman sitting opposite her who seemed to be listening and taking in her words. "Alexis, your father doesn't come into this job irrationally or blindly. If he did, I would kick him out this precinct faster than he could dial the mayor. He's aware of the risks and he would be inhuman if he wasn't scared sometimes, but he continues because it's something that fulfils him."

"Oh." And then she was silent, obviously running through the information the Captain had given her, attempting to reconcile it against her own fears and beliefs. It was a few quiet minutes before she turned a guilt-stricken face to Gates. "I've ruined everything for them, haven't I?"

Victoria shook her head and spoke gently, "I already knew." At Alexis' exclamation of surprise, she continued. "It's not hard to see the connection between the two of them. And as Mr Castle is technically not an NYPD employee, I'm happy to let him keep working with Detective Beckett."

"Oh, good," again, she was quiet a moment before a new thought occurred to her and she looked up in horror. "You won't tell them I told you, will you?"

"No, but I think _you_ should."

"But-"

"Your father will understand Alexis, if you explain your concerns."

Grudgingly, she nodded in acquiescence, looking every bit the teenager who was still a part of her.

"And you'll tell him tonight," she looked pointedly at the younger woman.

"No-"

"After what happened today, Alexis, you need to be with your family." She stood up, making a decision; she couldn't allow Castle's daughter to leave alone when she was still so obviously upset. "I'll drive you."

"Oh no, Captain, I couldn't. I-"

"You're not defying a police officer, are you? I would expect it from your father…"

"No, Sir," she mumbled, though a small smile quickly developed when she saw the humour in the Gates' features.

**_Fin_**

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_A/N: This is the first time I've played with Gates and Alexis - hope I did their characters justice! _

_Thank you for reading. All comments are greatly appreciated._


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